Jun 3, 2010

Elke Brüns of Gespenst der Armut

Today, it's my pleasure to introduce to you Elke Brüns, who is investigating the cultural aftermath of poverty on her blog Gespenst der Armut [Ghost of Poverty]. By tracking and discussing relevant articles on politics, science and the arts, Elke manages to relate an issue to our everyday lives that many might have deemed far away.

Follow the link below to read one of my favourite interviews of this series so far, and find out about the relation between blogging, poverty and the power of interpretation.What's your name, how old are you, and what do you do for a living (or all day, for that matter)?

Elke Brüns. My perceived age is 35 today, but it could be 70 tomorrow - official documents place me somewhere in the middle. I teach literary theory as a private lecturer at the University of Greifswald. Currently, I'm doing conceptual work for a research project on poverty. I like to read both in my job and at home.

How long have you been blogging? How did you get around to blogging?

Since 25 February 2010 – today, as I'm writing this, my blog is three months and three days old. I'm hoping to address a large audience with my research topic. I like blogging because I enjoy writing and the flexibility and speed it demands from me. Blogs allow for different styles and languages, that complements my scientific work well.

The ghost stands as a metaphor for poverty in modernity: It's here all the time, and only ever just temporarily invisible before it will return - and it will be returning until its problematic concomitants are solved. From what it looks like, that ghost will hardly come to rest any time soon - quite on the contrary, really.

What are you blogging about? Why?

I blog about cultural constructions of poverty. And about images, symbols and practices that we associate with it. I want to find out how we talk about poverty, how we see it and what we make from it: I'm about patterns of interpretation - and, consequently, power of interpretation. These images we create will become reality sooner or later.

I blog about all that, because the socio-symbolic dimension of poverty is hardly spoken about in relevant discussions, even though it is a very effective and important one in societal, political and social regards. Presently, politicians, philosophers and scientists are claiming that poverty is a culture on its own - a culture that causes the poor to be poor. Like that, you can perfectly excuse an erosion of solidarity.

Who's your target audience?

Everyone. We aren't all suffering from poverty, of course, but it affects our whole society nevertheless.

Who designed your blog? How much was that? In case you designed your own layout: Where did you learn how to?

Wordpress, 1&1. Due to a lack of experience with other systems I couldn't recommend them, but so far they've been working well.

What role play photos, MP3-files or video clips on your blog? If you use them, would you mind showing us one?

As a writer, I find photos, music etc. enriching and inspiring. Searching for photos is often tedious, though, and being the impatient person that I am, I'm thinking of working with more own shots in the future. We'll see... I'm not only writing, though, but also producing video clips of interviews (see the "Besuchercouch" link on my blog).

How many readers do you have? How many would you like to have? Does their number matter to you at all?

Currently I get between 70 and 100 per day. The number of visits has been growing, which I like, but I'm not after a specific target figure. I do care about the the number of readers in terms of reactions like feedback. Like that I know it's not all lost in space and I'm not only writing to myself. I appreciate real readers and the possibility to communicate.

Can you learn how to blog? Do you need to know a lot about computers? Do you have any advice for beginners?

The easiest answer first: No, you don't have to know much about computers, 'cause otherwise I wouldn't be blogging; the question whether you can learn how to is a little more difficult to answer. Merely technically speaking, I suppose you can. It's more relevant, I think, how you define your blog and what you expect from it. I suppose we're all different there - personally, I'm interested in blogs with a distinctive profile. Perfection (whatever that means) isn't all that important, rather something like passion, a certain point of view. In any case, and this is where I get to the last question, I'd say: Try it! Have fun! A blog is never carved in stone, you may change it into something new any time.

Have you made negative experiences with blogging, too? What kind?

No, but I've only been blogging for a very short time.

Do you use twitter, too? Why (not)? What pros and cons do you see when it comes to twitter?

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